Did you know that if your baby needs specialized care in a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), you can stay with them, nursing your baby or pumping milk for feeding? While in the NICU you’ll be one of baby’s primary caretakers.
Skin-to-skin care (SSC) is sometimes called “kangaroo care,” because baby remains skin-to-skin with you for as long as possible. As you care for your baby in the NICU, you may wonder when you’re going to be able to catch up on your much-needed sleep and self-care.
Going Skin-to-Skin in the NICU
SSC or kangaroo care is when you place your baby upright on your bare chest so that your baby’s skin is in direct contact with your skin.
If your baby is in the NICU, ask your nurses how to practice relaxing and feeding while skin-to-skin. Preterm infants are more relaxed and sleep better and longer skin-to-skin with a parent. And this is important because deep sleep is vital to brain development in preemie babies.
Benefits of Parent Sleep During SSC in the NICU
One concern you may have is how you will safely snuggle skin-to-skin safely with your newborn in the NICU. Parents will be encouraged to fall asleep skin-to-skin with their baby as long as the following safety measures are in place:
- you and baby are in a non-rocking, reclining chair with arm rests or bed
- baby is well secured by an appropriate wrap to parent’s chest
- baby is electronically monitored, if necessary
- an appropriate healthcare provider is immediately available
Did you know, in parents, skin-to-skin promotes relaxation, lowers blood pressure, heart rate, cortisol levels, feelings of depression and anxiety, and increases oxytocin levels? It’s often difficult for sleep-deprived parents to stay awake for those long hours while skin-to-skin with their newborn.
Ask your nurses how you can safely snuggle and snooze in the NICU with your little one. To keep you and baby safe, follow these safety precautions:
- Take care when eating or drinking while holding your baby
- Remember to keep your eyes on your newborn if you need to take a phone call
- Use a wrap or skin-to-skin contact device to help you safely and securely hold baby
Resources for Parent Sleep During SSC
It may take some time to get used to the noises, beeps, and sounds of the NICU. While you’re caring for your baby, they’ll be continuously monitored through pulse oximetry and/or electrocardiogram, including while you snuggle. NICU equipment and wires should remain visible, secure, and attached to an electronic monitor which should also be visible and quickly assessable.
In an emergency or for scheduled healthcare interventions, clinicians will need quiet, easy, and immediate access to your newborn.
Your nurses are there to support you and your baby, even with challenges to baby’s health. They’ll check your swaddle to ensure baby is being safely held and that the medical equipment monitoring baby remains in place and is visible to the clinicians. Most NICU nurses will make their best efforts to provide care and check on baby while you’re holding your little one. Did you know that your presence helps make all of these checks less stressful for baby? You can relax knowing that the health and safety of your newborn is of the utmost importance to the clinicians providing care in the NICU.
Avoiding Accidental Falls
One of the greatest challenges is ensuring your baby doesn’t experience a fall from your arms or equipment in the NICU. Your care team will help you sit in a place that’s protected from drafts and you’ll be taught how to safely transfer your baby to and from their bassinette or incubator.
If you’re a little nervous don’t worry you’ll receive lots of education and preparation. Skin-to-skin care is a time for intimate connection between you and your baby and when done properly, it’ll be a calm, soothing experience and improve long-term outcomes for you both.
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